


Courting Disaster

by sevenall



Category: Alliance-Union - C. J. Cherryh
Genre: F/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-21
Updated: 2020-08-21
Packaged: 2021-03-06 19:15:24
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 673
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/26034046
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sevenall/pseuds/sevenall
Summary: Dekker gets ideas. Meg has to run interference. Graff helps. Also, honey.
Relationships: Jurgen Graff/Signy Mallory, Paul Dekker/Meg Kady
Comments: 2
Kudos: 4
Collections: Fandom Giftbox 2020





	Courting Disaster

**Author's Note:**

  * For [opalmatrix](https://archiveofourown.org/users/opalmatrix/gifts).



> I feel like this story needs warnings, but I'm not sure what for, since nothing bad happens. Only bad thoughts?

"Tea," Kady said, without so much as a "sir" or "begging your pardon", and thrust a cup of something liquid in front of him. Graff sniffed it cautiously, for all the good it did. He was so stuffed up it could have been carrier fuel and he wouldn't have noticed. Or he would have drunk it anyway, just to put an end to the way everything hurt.

"Thanks," he croaked, hoping against all hope she'd go away and leave him to expire in peace on top of his paperwork.

No such luck. Kady stayed where she was, looking expectant. Nobody who'd spent years putting up with Dekker was going to take a hint and quit just like that. Dammit, he knew what she was doing and why, he just didn't want to deal with this today. Or ever.

Part of it was envy, maybe. Not jealousy, Signy was her own person and he had no reason to doubt his place in her esteem. But Dekker was young, objectively attractive and with the odd vulnerability that Signy had a particular taste for. If she'd finally notice Dekker, if he kept trying to draw her attention, there was no way to predict what would happen, although odds were high they'd be out a rider pilot when Dekker smashed himself to pieces against Mallory. God's help them all, but Talley had been the best case scenario. Nice guy, Talley. Lots of baggage, but so had all of them, these days.

"Kady." His voice gave out and he had to start again. "I'm not sure what you think I can do to help."

She shrugged, maybe with less than her usual confidence.

"We'll manage Dekker," she said, by which she probably meant their usual mix of shouting and care-taking that kept all four of them on track somehow. "He'll understand there is no deal to be made."

Or any leverage to be had. While Dekker's understanding of human interaction was orthogonal to most people, you couldn't fault his loyalty, only his expectations.

"We had other business at Pell," he reminded her gently. "The Captain wouldn't have done it otherwise."

Signy had told him so, as close to an apology as she'd ever make. He'd felt better hearing it, even if he still wasn't sure it was entirely the truth. The important part was that she had done it. And set a precedent, of course. Which was why Kady was in his office, looking for him to run interference, while the rest of Dekker's crew sorted him out.

"I know that." Kady's eyes were steady. 

No need to say that Dekker didn't. That Dekker was a shit long-scan operator, that both the past and the future panicked him, that he might have come to term with the facts of age and death and age differences, but throw potential illness and rejuv failure into the mix and suddenly his focus narrowed into saving his team now. Even if no one needed saving.

"Alright." Graff picked up his tablet. 

A few routine supply runs to start with to get them off the carrier. Then some carefully planned downtime before the next tetralogics session, to make sure the tape didn't amplify the problem. The rest would be up to them. 

"That what you had in mind?"

The fight went out of Kady. Well, some of it.

"Yeah. Yeah, that'll do us. Thank you, sir."

"Glad to be of service. As you were, and kindly take this concoction back to where it came from. I assume you made it yourself? With the… insect vomit?"

He'd take the cup of carrier fuel now. No, make that a whole damn tank.

"Sir, it is a natural Earth remedy…"

But Kady was smiling for the first time since entering the room, and that was what he'd been looking for.

"Vomited by an insect is all I need to know, Kady. Let's try to not court disaster, okay?"

As if they ever did anything else, he thought, but did not say. She, of all people, knew.


End file.
